At the time of this writing, the result of the American presidential election is still unknown. But the winner is already known: the upper crust of the bourgeoisie of the world’s top capitalist power.
Two different styles…
On one side, the very bland Hillary Clinton, a multimillionaire who has been in power for decades, while her husband was president and later, as a senator and then as US Secretary of State. From this time, she’s had to bear with personal scandals, but not only. There is also her track record: her support for the war and occupation in Afghanistan and Iraq, and for the bailout of the banks during the 2008 economic meltdown, which officially cost $700 billions but in fact cost 11 times more.
On the other side, the real estate developer and billionaire Donald Trump who brought the level of this campaign down to the gutter. Mexicans, Muslims, women, and black people: all were hit by his gross demagogy. This hatred is what most of his programme is built on.
…serving the same bourgeoisie
In this election, money is the kingmaker. Together, the candidates have raised $1.5 billion for their campaign.
Clinton was backed by the US biggest fortunes. She said so herself at a meeting with bankers: “I have represented you for eight years.” As for Trump, his favorite sentence “you’re fired” speaks volume. What a programme! Whatever the election result, the interest of their class will be faithfully served by the winner.
The major capitalist companies that were responsible for the 2008 crisis fared well in the end. Banks were bailed out, industry heavily laid off to restore profits. At the same time, large areas were devastated, and 43 million Americans are currently on supplemental nutrition assistance program. Neither candidate promises to end this. As for foreign policy, it depends very little on the candidates’ promises. Remember Obama, who promised to leave the Middle East! Since 1991, the world’s first military power is involved in a series of wars for the control of oil-rich Middle East, and these wars will continue.
Our class brothers and sisters
In France we often see the US only as a caricature. A country where money is everything, with a consumerist lifestyle. These elections are a caricature of the caricature. And yet, this country has millions of workers whose life is similar to ours.
More and more young Americans realise they are part of the working class. The need to have more than one job or to live in their parents’ basement opened their eyes to the “middle class” myth.
So there are a lot of similarities between France and the US! Elections that few get involved in, and candidates who are far from being concerned with workers’ problems (except, in France, for Philippe Poutou and Nathalie Arthaud). A racist and xenophobic demagogy that is unleashed to make us forget the real issues. A working class pounded by the economic crisis and young people who understand that there is little future for them within this system.
On both sides of the Atlantic we are faced by the same problem. That is, how to organise, how to give ourselves the means, through the class struggle, to impose the policy we need. None of the bourgeois politicians who play in this big electoral show will do it for us.
